Display Behaviors, Mechanical Sounds, and Evolutionary Relationships of The Club-Winged Manakin (Machaeropterus Deliciosus)

Abstract

Male Club-winged Manakins (Machaeropterus deliciosus) are known to produce a unique mechanical sound with their extremely modified secondary feathers, yet the species remains poorly known behaviorally. I observed lekking males in Reserva Maquipucuna, Pichincha Province, Ecuador, to better understand the role of mechanical sounds, the behavioral repertoire, and other details of the natural history of this species. The behavioral repertoire of M. deliciosus is much more diverse than previously documented; it includes four mechanical phrases, two vocal sounds, and seven display behaviors. Mechanical sounds constitute the most prominent elements of the species' displays, replacing vocal sounds for territorial advertisement. I examine possible homology of the observed behaviors and propose a new phylogenetic hypothesis, that Machaeropterus forms a monophyletic clade with the genus Pipra, based on the existence of a complex shared courtship display.